Latino Advocates Launch Protests in Long Island
Posted on Aug 6, 2009 12:07pm PDT
In Long Island, numerous Latino advocates launched protests outside of County Executive Steve Levy's office this past Wednesday. Advocates were outraged by a supposed joke Levy had made recently. According to reports, Levy made a comment about
deporting kitchen workers.
Levy made the comment while attending a roast at Captain Bill's Restaurant in Bay Shore just last week. His staff says that the comment was merely a joke and that Levy had been making fun of his own political reputation. Dan Aug, Levy's spokesman said that, "This is a political correctness run amok."
However, Latino advocates say that the comment was definitely not funny. During protests, they held sign that read "We need leaders, not jokes" and "Steve Levy can't stand the heat, so he wants to deport the kitchen".
Throughout the duration of the protest, leaders of labor civil rights and religious movement groups made attacks on Levy. They often referenced the stabbing of Marcelo Lucero. Lucero was an Ecuadorean immigrant that had been killed last year in what has been labeled a horrendous hate crime.
Executive director of the Long Island Immigrant Alliance, Luis Valenzuela said that, "The death of Marcelo Lucero was predicted by the climate of hate that has been created here in Suffolk County for a number of years."
Newsday reports that five people who attended the roast last week said that Levy asked an attorney who had been making jokes about him whether he was a U.S. citizen. After the attorney answered "yes", Levy said, "That is a good thing... because otherwise I'd have to deport you like the guys back there in the kitchen."
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